Rise News

A Staff Member and Nonprofit Organization Growing Together: Carrie's 20 Year Work Anniversary - (2/2/2018)

After 20 years of working for Rise, Carrie laughs as she recalls the mishap that occurred on her first day of the job with Rise. "They forgot to tell me where the shelter was!" Carrie had been hired as a Program Assistant at the shelter and was reporting for training, but she was wandering around the street because she didn't know the shelter's exact location. Maintaining the confidentiality of the shelter's location has always been important to Rise. This was valued so much that staff failed to remember to tell their newest employee where her workplace was.

Carrie started at Rise in 1998 and has grown right along with our nearly 40-year-old nonprofit organization. Initially hired as a Program Assistant, she was trained to do crisis intervention counseling and later promoted to Shelter Manager. As Shelter Manager, she found that administrative responsibilities took priority, and she missed the sustained contact with the clients. Most of all, she missed counseling. Carrie returned to school and earned a Master's of Social Work from Binghamton University in 2012. Certified as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, she became Rise's first therapeutic counselor.

Carrie offers both individual and group counseling. A typical day finds her meeting with clients at shelter as well as with non-residential clients in her tranquil office in the administrative building. Once a week she leads a group counseling session with shelter residents, utilizing games to coax conversation and healing. She also leads a weekly evening support group for survivors not utilizing our shelter. In addition to these duties, Carrie also engages in community outreach and education as needed.